Mom & young child safety?

My 7 year old %26amp; I will be vacationing on the BI in February. I vacationed in the BI in %26#39;05 with my boyfriend %26amp; we stayed at the Hilton. Didn%26#39;t much leave the resort, other than to go snorkeling %26amp; on a helicopter ride.

On this visit, my son %26amp; I plan to do some snorkeling, visit beaches %26amp; waterfalls. There is a tour of the waterfalls, but it%26#39;s quite pricey. Would there be any safety issues for us to drive %26amp; visit by ourself? I realize that there needs to be common sense...

One last thing, we are staying at the Outrigger Keahou - how long will the drive be to see waterfalls %26amp; a good suggestion for where to go (Akaka Falls maybe?). Planning a trip by myself is a little overwhelming!

Thanks!

Mom %26amp; young child safety?

I think you can relax, the Big Island is very safe that way. You can visit attractions without being harassed or stalked or bothered.

Same common sense as anywhere else, don%26#39;t let single guys or groups of guys get the wrong idea by being too friendly, don%26#39;t walk isolated trails without another adult, don%26#39;t wander around towns at night off the main drag where no one can see you, the things women learn to do. Honestly, I seriously doubt anyone would bother you if you did hike alone because this is such a friendly safe place, but there are some bad apples as in most places so obviously it%26#39;s best to not put yourself in out of the way spots without a walking partner.

To go to the East side and back from Keauhou is a long day as it%26#39;s halfway around the island, so get up early and expect it to take all day, make sure you leave Akaka Falls area by 3 pm in order to get back by daylight, which would be best. Is it worth the trip? Yes, if you%26#39;re the kind who loves to drive around and explore. Will you have missed anything you can%26#39;t miss if you don%26#39;t drive a circle island trip, no, relax, do what you want and don%26#39;t pressure yourself.

Most people would want to see the Volcano National Park, so a circle island day would start you out early going north, stopping at Akaka Falls in the morning and perhaps grab a lunch in Hilo or stop to get some sandwiches made up, then on to the park and continue around the southern loop, stopping briefly at Punaluu Black Sand Beach. Again, make sure you leave the park a couple hours before sunset as the southern loop is dark and winding at night.

That%26#39;s a typical excursion hitting the high spots. If you start packing much more stuff in you will overdo it, if you really want to see more then plan a separate day for VNP.

For a second waterfall, stop at Rainbow Falls which is a very short detour and you can view the water close-up. Akaka Falls you can only view the falls and pool standing back (still lovely). Don%26#39;t feel bad if there%26#39;s no rainbow as most of the time there isn%26#39;t; it%26#39;s the falls that are nice. If you have time, continue up to Pe%26#39;e Pe%26#39;e Falls.

Not that the falls here are anything compared to say, Yosemite. What is different at Akaka would be the wonderful rain forest of bamboo and flowering vines.

Neither falls can you get under the falls, nor would you want to as rocks and debris tend to wash downstream and over the falls

At the waterfall parking lots, do not leave anything valuable visible in your car, and do not put anything in your trunk AT the parking lots. This attracts the car thieves, who DO scope out the waterfall parking lots ... all the lots have warning signs. Most of the time there are so many cars it would be hard for anyone to get away with it, but they do have slimjims and there are no security guards.

I recommend that for this trip you switch to a walking/hiking daypack instead of a regular purse, with only essentials in it, something light and comfortable so you don%26#39;t feel tempted to leave it in the car ... and NEVER EVER leave your camera in your vehicle either, expensive looking sunglasses are another temptation. Follow these simple guidelines and you shouldn%26#39;t have any problems.

Mom %26amp; young child safety?

PS.

When I said to leave Akaka by 3pm I meant if you go the northern route and turn around the same way ... if you are going around the island you would ideally leave the falls by mid-morning.

I forgot to say, always carry some water with you in Hawaii, in your car and on trails. If your son is a typical 7 year old he will likely enjoy carrying a small backpack himself.

Trip planning - also click on ';Island of Hawaii Attractions'; on your left menu here, and browse. You will want to have a guidebook in the car with you. Lonely Planet, Moon, The Big Island Experience are all very helpful, even Fodor%26#39;s. (I don%26#39;t recommend Big Island Revealed). Whatever publisher you choose, bring a book dedicated to the Big Island and not one that covers all of the islands.

Your rental car company Drive Map magazine is a good free tool that will get you around quite well.

Kadenmom,

You have some really good advice from KK already.

I would add the difficulty I see in your trip is the geographical challenges. The things you are planning are on opposite sides of the island. Virtually all the good snorkeling is on the west side, as are the beaches; and all the waterfalls are in the north, and east sides.

Which tour of waterfalls are you considering?

You did not indicate how long your vacation will be. If long enough, and if the volcano and waterfalls are important to you, consider splitting your time up and staying on the east or volcano areas one night. This will drastically reduce your single day driving times. For example: from Keauhou, go south to Punlalu’u for a quick stop, take pics, see the honu etc. Grab some sweet bread in Naalehu and a quick ice cream for the kid. Then onto Volcano. Get a B and B or stay at the lodge, spend one night. Check in; explore the park, then into Hilo for dinner. Next morning early start, breakfast in Hilo, Rainbow Falls, Onomea Bay, Akaka Falls, take the Hamakua coast leisurely pace. Laupahoehoe, Waipio Valley overlook, malasadas at Tex’s. Then back down the coast to Keauhou.

Another good day trip would be a beach and hike day. Start early get to Mauna Kea Beach hotel spend an hour at that beautiful beach, then up the coast to Hapuna. Then onto Kawaihae for lunch (Café Pesto?). Then up to Hawi and Pololu valley. Depending on the 7 y.o level of fitness, it would be a great hike down and check out the black sand beach, and back up the valley there is a waterfall. No swimming.

Be sure you are back up the trail before it starts getting dark; it gets dark FAST in the valley. If it is still daylight, take the 250 down into Waimea before heading back to Keauhou.

As KK said, follow simple precautions, have your cell phone on you at all times and let someone know if you will be driving around the island etc you will be fine. It is a very safe place and most folks are friendly enough.

Good luck and happy travels!

ooh, that%26#39;s really good advice ...

definitely if you had the option to split lodgings that would enhance exploring the island.

cell phone -- for sure (bear in mind some locations have no service due to mountains blocking the towers and other factors).

Truly the safety issues on the island are more about being careful with mother nature than from people. Be careful with the ocean, especially when you get away from the calmer area where you%26#39;re staying, be careful on trails, taking a mis-step in the wrong place can have serious consequences and no one may be around to help you out ... this type of safety you should take seriously.

Rainbow Falls and Pe%26#39;e Pe%26#39;e you access direct from parking lot, and Akaka Falls trail is state-maintained, easy to walk, and there are always people. No worries about visiting them. If you enjoy tropical plants at all, Hawaii Tropical Botanical Gardens is gorgeous, near Onomea Bay. Best visited if staying in Hilo or in combination with Akaka Falls only. Small waterfall area at bottom of garden.

If you did stay in East Hawaii, I would recommend the Panaewa Rainforest Zoo, free admission, different animals than on mainland, lovely grounds.

Before driving to East Hawaii, try to ascertain whether it%26#39;s raining over here. Sunshine where you are doesn%26#39;t mean it%26#39;s sunny here. A little rain is to be expected, but if it%26#39;s POURING as it can well be, you will not enjoy your trip so much, and it%26#39;s a long drive to be disappointed by ending up in monsoonlike rains. February is a wet month on the east side. Bring an umbrella!

Thank you both for the wonderful advice %26amp; putting my mind at ease! Originally we were going to go to Oahu, but I was apprehensive about the crowds %26amp; crime %26amp; metropolitan area of Waikiki in general so we switched to the BI...

I%26#39;m not sure if we%26#39;ll go to VNP, but if we do it will definately be on a day all by itself. On my last trip I saw a lot of lava via a helicopter tour %26amp; my son isn%26#39;t all that interested after he saw the photos - he was expecting an erupting volcana ala the dinosaur age!

We are staying for 5 nights %26amp; will do a snorkle cruise one day %26amp; my son will be doing the dolphin quest @ hilton another. I don%26#39;t want to be running all over the island since it%26#39;s such a short time, so we%26#39;ll take a day to do either the beach/hike day suggested by echolynch or the Rainbow Falls /Akaka Falls/HTBG suggested by KK.

Also re: guidebooks, thanks for the suggestions! I purchased BI Revealed prior to finding these forums %26amp; was less than impressed - too much about adventure aka danger, crossing private property, being rude to locals, etc..

Thanks again for excellent tips!

Sounds like a wonderful vacation. You%26#39;re welcome, and enjoy!